Ring rolling mill



p 1952 E. HENSCHKER ETAL 2,610,531

RING ROLLING MILL Filed July 23, 1949 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 TiCVE.

A TTORNEYS p 1952 E. HENSCHKER ETAL 2,610,531

RING ROLLING MILL Filed July 23, 1949 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 l\\\\V/ V Am 42 44 IN V EN TORS ERHARD HENSCHKER FBRANK SIDNEY SALTER A TTORNEYS Patented Sept. 16, 1952 RING ROLLING MILL Erhard Henschker and Frank Sidney Salter, Parkstone, England, assignors to The Loewy Engineering Company Limited, London, England, a corporation of Great Britain Application July 23, 1949, Serial No. 106,438 In Great Britain February 24, 1947 The invention relates rings are formed by reducing annular blanks between. externallyand internally-acting rolls. In vertical rolling mills of this type, .that end (hereafter called the outboard end) over which the blanks were slid into rolling position and the finish rolled rings withdrawn, had to be left entirely unsupported. 'It was therefore not possible touse these rolling mills for working 'blanks'with pre-formed holes of small diameter and requiring for .their working internally-acting rolls of correspondingly small diameter, as such slender rolls, when left unsupported at one end were bound to besubjected to excessive deflections and internal stresses, as soon as the full rolling pressure was applied.

. For these reasons, vertical ring rolling mills were unsuitable for carrying out certain classes of work. 1

' It is'an object of the present invention to provide novel and improved means for supporting the internally-acting rolls of ring rolling mills, in particular, vertical ring rolling mills.

According to the present invention, the in-' rings, to be placed over and withdrawn from the,

internally-acting roll.

. In one form of the inventiomthe carrier may be-inthe form of a cantilever arm projecting radially from a pillar to which it is connected or with which it forms a part, the arm being :rotatableabout the: axis of the pillar and the pillar displaceable With-the arm in a direction'parallel to the axis of the'internallyacting roll.

. In vertical ring rolling mills, the rolling pressure-is usually applied to the blanks through the intermediary of the internally-acting roll which is, therefore, often called also the pressure roll; and this roll is, for this purpose, mounted onaslide'which can be advanced towards theexternally-acting roll by'hydraulic .or other means which supply the rolling pressure. v

The supporting means for the outboard bearing provided according to the invention willthen also'be mounted on that slide. 'Means may be further provided for transmitting a predeter- Claims.

to rolling mills in which mined portion of therolling pressure from the hydraulic or other means direct to the outboard bearing-so as to ensure that this bearing receives no more than its due share-ofthe total rolling pressure. These means may comprise a fulcrumed lever which receives thefull rolling pres- I sure and splits it"up intoztwo portions, of which one is directly transmitted .to the outboard bear-v ing. This arrangement facilitates also'zthe computation of the individual'loads on the other as bearing of the internally-acting roll, as well that of the bending moments;

As explained above, the invention has been de-" vised in connection with rolling mills having internally-acting rolls of small or verysmall diam- T eter. In slender rolls, the area availablefor the seat of the outboard b'earingmay not be sufiiciently large for transmitting apropershare of the rolling pressure, and'it is, therefore,.a further feature of the invention to provide means by.

which this area is-increased. These means may consist of a sleeve fitted over and clamped firmly on to the outboard end of the internally-acting roll/so as to rotate. therewith, the sleeve being adapted to be placed on and Withdrawn from its seat-on the roll together with the ouboard bear--- The invention will now be described more in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which several embodiments of ring rolling mills according to the invention are shown:

Fig. l is a sectional elevation through a vertical ring rolling mill according to the invention.

Fig. 2 is a detail view of a modified type of outboard bearing used in the mill according to Fig. l.

F s. 3 and tare detail views showing modifications of I the pressure-transmitting means used in a rolling mill according to Fig. l. I V

The rolling mill shown in the drawings is of the vertical type and has an externally-acting roll [0 and an internally-acting roll H which cooperate witheach other in the reduction of thickwalled annular blanks B to thin-walled rings of correspondingly increased diameter.

The rolling .pressure is transmitted to the blanks through the intermediary of the internally-acting roll II, also called the pressure roll. Tothis end, this roll is mounted on aslide I2 displaceable inthe stationary frame l3 of the mill in a direction towards and away from the externally-acting roll T Ill by means of a hydraulic ram-l4 displaceable in a cylinder [5 which supintermediary of another pair of bevel gears l8- and a spindle 9 to an auxiliary power drive to.

start and maintain rotation of the pressure roll independently of the externally-acting"roll, the

drive comprisinga motor 29, areduct'ion gear 2|" and a slipping clutch 22.

As will be readily apparent from Fig. 1, the

blanks B have to be slid over the outboard end.

of the pressure roll in order to be placed in a position ready for rolling, and the finish-rolled rings have to be removed from the pressure roll in the same Way. The outboard end of the pressure roll has, therefore, to be free from any obstructions whileworkpieces are charged into or discharged from therolling mill. To achieve this result, while at'th'e same time providing a support for the outboard end of the pressure roll 1 i, an outboard bearing 23 is provided which is mounted on a retractable carrier 24 capable of two movements, one parallel to the axis of thepressure roll and the'other one awayfrom this axis, the latter movement being here a rotation about an axis parallel to that of the roll. The carrier 24 comprises, in the embodiment shown, a cantilever arm radially projecting froma pillar 25 which is adapted to be lifted and lowered by hydraulic cylinder 25 andram 2?, both arranged in the slide 12. y

In Fig. 1, the outboard bearing 23 is shown as being. situated on the outboard end of the pres-- sure roll I I. after ablankBtha's been placed over this roll, and the slidefllf? as having been advanced so as to approach the pressure roll to the" externally actih'groll. The outer end ofithe cantilever arm 24 has an extension 28'which, in the position shown in Fig. 1, is received in a socket 29 on the frame l3,'so that the cantilever arm will serve as a brace for the outboard bearing 23. 1

The pillar 25 is journalled in the slide l2, so as to be readily rotatable therein after theoutboard bearing has been lifted from its seaton the pressure'roll. A comparatively small force will be sufficient to swing the cantilever arm 24 about the axis of the pillar 25, so that this movement can be effected by hand.

The lower end of the pressure roll H, which is tapered, is drawn firmly into a conical recess on the top of. .the spindle I9 by means of a threaded coupling rod. 30.,"whereby thepressure of a sleeve-Bdbymeans of a spring 39.

4 3| is clamped to the pressure roll by means of a cup-shaped coupling piece 32 which is pressed against the conical end of the roll by a spring 33, the sleeve having ears 34 engaging with recesses in the sleeve 3| so as to couple thesev parts with each other for rotation; The sleeve is threadedly connected to a. cap 35which forms an abutment for the spring 33.

Alternatively, the outboard bearing may comprise astandard type roller bearing 36, for example, as shown in Fig. 2. This bearing is axially held between thefianges of a housing 31 and The "housing 31 is mounted on the cantilever arm 24 by means of keys, not shown here, which give the bearing assembly freedom of radial movement'relative to the pressure roll H.

The outboard bearing, especially if it is of the roller type, will have to be of restricted size in view of the small diameter of the pressure roll and can therefore transmit only a limited. share of the rolling pressure. To prevent the bearing from being overloaded, means are preferably provided to ensurethat only. a predetermined portion-of the-rolling pressure is trans mitted to the outboard bearing. As'shownin Fig. 3, these means may comprise a lever '40 -fu1-" crumed to the slide l2 by a 'pin M and engaged at a point'nearits fulcrum-by a block 42- which in turn is connectedto the ram 14 by means'of tie-bars 43 and crosshead 44 Interposed between outboard bearing 23 and the leverMl' is a rod 45 which is slidable in the cantilever arm 24 and the pillar 25. the lever 49 at a point remote from the fulcrum pin 4|, so that only a small proportion of the rolling pressure will be transmitted to the outboard bearing. It is, however, possible, and within the scope of the invention, to vary the proportion of the load received by the outboard bearing by varying the distances of the rod and the block Mlfrom the pivot pin 4|. 7

A buffer spring 43 is placed before the block 42in order to'keep the pressure roll H in engagement with the blanks B during the rolling process should one of the blanks have an uneven wall thickness due to eccentric piercing of the hole inthe blank. 7

A modification of the pressure-transmitting means forthe outboard'bearing is shown in Fig. 4. In'this' case, the rod 45 is dispensed with and the cantileverarm 24 itself takes its place. The arm is then slidable in a tubular guide 41- radially extending from the top of the pillar 25 and it roll is firmly, but at the same time detach-ably,

ll every time the bearing .23 is'pla'ced in posi-' tion on that roll, the sleeve being suspended inside the outboard bearing so as to be freely rotatable therein. The rolling pressure will then be transmitted to the pressure roll at theouter surface of the sleeve 3i, whereby it .is possible to provide a sufiiciently large area for the transmission of I this pressure, independently of the diameter of the pressure roll, which, as stated above, is governed by the minimum diameter of the preformed holes inthe blanks. The sleeve will be engaged by the lever 40 at the end remote from the outboard bearing.

It will be seen from the foregoing that the invention provides a ring rolling mill in which the internally-acting or pressure roll is fully supported at both its ends during the rolling operationso that the deflection andthe stresses to which this roll is subjected by the rolling process will be kept at a minimum, while at the same time the free accessibility'of thisroll at its outboard end forv work-charging and discharging purposes'is maintained. 9

It is also evident that the invention provides means for determining exactly the share of the rolling pressure received by 'th e outboard bear ing, whereby any overloading of this bearing effectively prevented. I a

By mounting the outboard bearing 'on'a retractable carrier which is capable of two-move} ments, one parallel to the axis of the pressure roll and one away from this axis, it will be en- The rod 45 abuts against sured that the bearing can be withdrawn into any desired position, while, at the same time,

the effective areaof the'bearing ca'n'bemade to suit-any requirements;

-Whatweclaimis: 1 I

ing one end of an internal roll, .an arm mounted:

on said slide having bearing means for supporting the other end of said internalroll so that I said internal roll and its bearings can move with said "slide,;and arm shifting means on said slide and connected with saidarm moving said arm in a direction parallel with the axis of said bearing means on the slide toward and away from an ,in ternal roll on said slide and independent thereof;

2. In a ring rolling machine having external and internal rolls adapted to reduce annular blanks, the combination including an external roll carrying frame, a slide movable toward and away from an external roll on said frame during rolling, said slide having bearing means adapted to support one end of an internal roll, an arm mounted on said slide having bearing means for supporting the other end of ,said internal roll, said bearing means on said slide bein movable therewith, and power operated arm shifting mechanism mounted on said slide and connected with said arm moving said arm and its bearing means for said internal roll toward and away from an internal roll on said slide in a direction parallel to the axis of said bearing and internal roll.

3. In a ring rolling machine having external and internal rolls adapted to reduce annular blanks, the combination including a stationary external roll carrying frame, a slide movable toward and away from an external roll on said frame during rolling, said slide having bearing means adapted to support one end of an internal roll, said bearing on the slide being movable therewith, an arm having one end supported in said slide, a bearing supported adjacent the other end of said arm adapted to hold the opposite end of said internal roll, and power operated arm shifting mechanism mounted on said slide and connected with said arm moving said arm and its bearing for said internal roll toward and away from an internal roll on said slide in a direction parallel to the axis of said bearing and internal roll.

4. In a ring rolling machine having external and internal rolls adapted to reduce annular blanks, the combination including an external roll carrying frame, a slide movable toward and away from an external roll on said frame, said slide having means adapted to support one end of an internal roll, a pillar on said slide, a cantilever arm supported on said pillar, means mounted on said arm for supporting the other end of said internal roll, and power operated arm shifting mechanism mounted on said slide and connected with said arm moving said arm toward and away from an internal roll on said slide in a direction substantially parallel to the axis of said bearing and internal roll.

5. In a ring rolling machine having external and internal rolls adapted to reduce annular blanks, the combination including a stationary external roll' ca'rrying frame, a slide movable in a horizontal dire'c'tion toward and awayfrom an external: roll on 'saidframe during rolling said slide having bearing means rotatablysup ,porting one end of an internal roll, said bearin means on the slideb'eing movable therewith, an 'arm rotatably mounted on said-slide 'on a. vertical axis, said arm having bearing means for:

supporting the other end'of said internalroll, and arm shiftingmeans on said slide connected with said arm moving said arm'and'its bearing for the internal roll in a direction parallel with the axis -of said bearing means on the slide: toward and away from an internal roll on said slide'andindependent thereof. a

6. In a ring" rolling machine having external and internal rolls adapted'to reduce annular blanks, the combination including an external roll carrying frame, a slide movable-toward and away from an external roll on said frame, said slide having'mea'ns adapted to support' one end of an internal roll, a pillar mounted on said slide, a cantilever arm rotatably mounted in said pillar, a bearing carried by said arm for the other end of said internal roll, and power operated arm shifting mechanism mounted on said slide and connected with said arm moving said arm and its bearing toward and away from an internal roll on said slide in a direction substantially parallel to the axis of the internal roll on the slide.

'7. In a ring rolling machine having external and internal rolls adapted to reduce annular blanks, the combination including an external roll carrying frame, a slide movable toward and away from an external roll on said frame, said slide having arm means including a bearing adaptedto support one end of an internal roll, a hollow driving spindle in said slide for supporting the other end of said internal roll, coupling means extending through said hollow spindle attachable to said internal roll for holding it in place on the slide, and power operated arm shifting mechanism mounted on said slide and connected with said arm moving said arm and its bearing toward and away from an internal roll on said slide in a direction substantially parallel to the axis of the internal roll on the slide.

8. In a ring rolling machine having external and internal rolls adapted to reduce annular blanks, the combination including an external roll carrying frame, a slide movable toward and away from an external roll on said frame during rolling, said slide having bearing means adapted to support one end of an internal roll, an arm rotatably mounted on said slide and movable therewith, a bearing mounted on said arm for supporting the opposite end of said internal roll, a sleeve mounted in said bearing on said am freely rotatable relative to said bearing and axially movable relative thereto, means connecting said sleeve to said internal roll for rotation therewith, and power operated arm shifting mechanism mounted on said slide and connected with said arm moving said arm and its bearing toward and away from an internal roll on said slide in'a direction parallel to the axis of the internalroll on the slide.

9. In' a ring rolling machine having external and internal rolls adapted to reduce annular blanks, the combination including an external roll carrying frame, a slide movable toward and away from an external roll on said frame, said slide having means supporting one end of an internal roll, an arm mounted on said slide hav- 7 in gmearing means for supporting the other end oissai'dxintemaliroll, arm shifting means .on said slideconnected with :said arm moving saidarm inxa direction-substantially parallelwith the axis of :said bearing and independent of said roll, means t-applying rolling pressure to said slide tending to :move said rolls together, and means applying a predetermined portion of said rolling pressure direct to'tsaid bearing.

1.0.In .a ringrolling machine having external and 'internal rolls adapted to reduce annular blanks, athe combination including an external rollncarrying'frame, a slide -movable toward and away from an external roll on said frame, said slide having means supporting one end of an internal roll, an arm mounted :on said slide hav-- ing hearing means for supporting the other end ofisaid internal roll, arm shifting means on said slide connected with said arm moving said arm inn-direction substantially parallel with the axis oft-sai hearing and independent of said roll,

aomssi means applying rolling pressure to said slide tending to move said rolls together, fulcrumlevermeans receiving said rolling pressure, and a thrust member connecting said fulcrum lever with said bearing so as to apply s. part of the rolling pressure --directly to said bearing.

ERHARD HENSCHKER.

FRANK "SIDNEY SAL'IER;

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent: 1

UNITED STATES PA'I'ENTS 

